The Path of Righteousness
by IndustrialIllusion
Summary: Set in Ishval, How Riza came to follow Roy. Oneshot. Complete. Please R&R :3


A/N: Hey guys. So I was bored and such. I love Royai, but this is not that, so, ah, yes, well, enjoy!

The Path of Righteousness

I stood there, standing over him. He looked peaceful, black hair disheveled and face slack with the neutrality of sleep. I felt disconnected from my body, as a trembling hand that looked just like mine withdrew the handgun from its place in my holster, and leveled it with Mustang's head. I watched him kill a child today. I watched him burn an Ishvalan child to death today. I watched as flames poured from the boy's mouth in silent agony as for a split second, his skin seemed to tremble like water disturbed, before blisters exploded with flame from every orifice of his-no, its- body, as the corpse fell to it's knees, the machine gun falling with a dull thud to the sand. He used my father's alchemy to burn a child alive.

A tear slid down my cheek. How could I ever allow him to live? How could I carry on my own life knowing that a monster I helped create wandered the planet with the military's endless support at his back? No. Never. Mustang had to die, I told myself.

"There was a time when…I…I loved you, Roy," I whispered, so quietly that I could barely hear it escape my own lips. I clicked the safety off my hand gun.

"I'm sorry."

Nothing.

I couldn't do it.

"Well, Riza, don't have the heart?" Roy asked. He opened his eyes and looked at me. Save for the wind that battered the tent, not a sound passed between us for a tense moment.

"Is that all you have to say, you-you bastard!" I yelled, lowering my gun.

Roy's leg lashed out from underneath the ratty blanket and swept my legs out from under me, my gun sliding across the floor of his tent. He lunged for me, and I met his lunge, crashing into him, landing an angry fist into his face, splitting his brow badly, but not even fazing him. I rolled him underneath me and pinned his wrists, straddling his stomach.

"Are you so shameless Roy Mustang? You killed a child! You killed a child with my father's alchemy. You monster! I can't let you live." I reached for my gun, and he kneed me in the ribs, sending me reeling, and suddenly the rolled were reversed and h was on top of me, with his hands holding my wrists painfully tight.

"Do you think I want any of this Riza? When he raised his gun at me, do you think I would just let him kill me? I know he was just a terrified child Riza. I know he was! I refuse to die here."

Tears streamed down my face. "I've stood by and watched you kill over and over again Roy, I can't do it anymore. You're just a dog on a leash now! What happened to you Roy, tell me what happened?" I yelled desperately

"I don't know!" He screamed in my face. Blood dripped from his brow and dropped to my cheek. "I'm so terrified Riza, I don't want this. I don't want this anymore. A part of me wishes you just would have shot me, but I just can't die here. I refuse to, and I can't let myself die. You saw what happened out there today. Little boys can pick up guns just like men, and little girls can lead men to war, just like queens."

"So is that all they are now? Are people: men, women, children, are they just canon fodder to you now?" I spat.

"No," he yelled in outrage, his fist colliding with the ground next to my face. He sat back, sitting on my stomach, his head hung limply back, staring at the ceiling of the tent. He laughed to himself briefly. "Maybe you're right Hawkeye. Maybe the idealist that I used to be is gone. Maybe I deserve to be put down like the dog I am." He reached beneath his coat and pulled the standard military issue handgun, and put it to his chin. "You always were the smart one, Hawkeye…Riza…" I heard his finger shift on the trigger.

Bang

Tears streamed down my face.

Tears fell from mustang's chin onto the blue of my uniform. I had moved before I could even think. Hairs that the bullet had clipped off fell to the ground. The gun lay thrown across the tent.

Roy's hand moved to cove his eyes. "This is…this is so fucked up. Everything, this war. This. If there is a God he must have turned his back on us long ago. We really are in Hell, aren't we Riza?" Roy sat back on his heels with his face buried in his hand.

I slid from beneath him and came to my knees in front of him, putting us at the same height. "Roy…" my voice softened. I touched his face tentatively.

"No, Riza!" he said jerking away from my touch. "Nothing. Nothing can ever fix this."

I took his hands at the wrists and looked him in the eye. "Then all we can do is pay penance."

"How in God's name am I going to atone for any of this?" He said with bitter humor in his voice.

"Listen very closely Roy, you're going to fix this screwed up thing we call the military, and I'm going to help you. I'm going to save this bullet for you, and if you stray down this path again. I will put you down. For real next time," I said, deathly serious.

"I'm just a Major. What can I do?" He demanded.

"Climb up the ladder, what else?" she asked.

He nodded in understanding.

"And I'll be right there behind you. You told me once, that you joined the military so you could protect the people of our country. Do you still mean that?"

"Yes, I do. Are you sure you can handle the long ride to the top?"

"I became a soldier so that I could be strong enough to shoulder the suffering of the people I care about. So yes, I'll follow you till the end, as long as you don't stray."

He smiled weakly. "I hope you can be strong enough for me too Riza. My constitution is not as sturdy as yours is."

I took his hand in mine, stroking the back of it with my thumbs. "I'll be whatever you need me to be, sir."

His other hand came to rest on top of my head, stroking my short hair. "Thank you Hawkeye." He leaned forward and placed a chaste, feather-light kiss on my forehead.

I felt warmth creep into my face. As a girl, Roy had stirred feelings in me that I had never really felt since. It was like tightness in my chest, or that set my heart aflutter like a birds. Sometimes, I still felt pangs of those things when he reminded me that he once was a young optimistic boy who was sure that he would make the world a better place. If I had my way, he still would.

"For what?" I asked softly.

"Saving my life, again," he replied.

I smiled to myself.

Always.


End file.
